As far as the Steam comparison goes, Sony's, Microsoft's and Nintendo's digital stores, have plenty of exclusives in them right now that don't have any physical counterparts. Now, if you don't have XBL Gold or PSN+, you rarely ever see any big deals on them. Certainly not anywhere near the level that Steam does it (80% off etc). I really don't see it as a given that they would do so with the next gen, especially since they'll all STLL be retail dependant, an issue Steam does not have.